ROYAUME UNI – Irchester - Archaeologists have unearthed more than two dozen skeletons in what is thought to be an ancient cemetery at Chester Farm, near Irchester. It is hoped the exciting discovery may shed further light on the 2,000-year-old Roman settlement and give another glimpse into what life was like in Roman Britain. Project manager at the dig Jennifer Sherrey said archaeologists had an inkling they might find skeletons at the site as several had been unearthed very nearby in a dig two years ago. However, archaeologists were completely unprepared for the number and quality of the skeletons discovered. Miss Sherrey added: “Chester Farm is a really important site as we have evidence of about 10,000 years of habitation. “We think the skeletons we found would have been poorer members of society, and that this was a small cemetery outside the main settlement. “Some of the graves were lined with stones, one with a millstone, so that may have represented their trade, but there are no other grave ornaments or trinkets. Irchester Roman Town is thought to have been home to 600 or 700 people – which would have made it a large settlement in Roman times. The town was near a ford on the River Nene and there was a walled fort.

PAKISTAN – Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa - The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Directorate of Archaeology and Museums has formally launched its website – www.doamkp.gov.pk. The introduction says that the directorate of archaeology, since its inception in 1992, has been engaged in safeguarding and promoting the cultural heritage of the province. Through the efforts of the directorate, 12 new museums have opened across the province and it is also protecting about 57 heritage sites under the K-P Antiquity Act 1997. The website gives detailed information about the province’s museums, including Peshawar Museum, Dir Museum, Mardan Museum, City Museum, Gor Gathri (Gor Khuttree), Chitral Museum, Pushkalavati Museum, Hund Museum, Sethi House, Bumborate Museum, Bannu Museum and Archaeological Museum, Saidu Sharif. Separately, it includes brief descriptions of Gor Gathri, Dalazak Tomb and Kotla Mohsin Gateway among other places. The department has also vowed to develop and improve Peshawar and Swat museums, promote archeological activities in the province.

TURQUIE – Myra - The rock tombs date back to Lycians and are located in the upper part of a Roman theater in the ancient city, which is also famous for the Byzantine-era St. Nicholas Theater. The ancient city of Myra served as the central city of the Lycian Union. Many structures were built and renovated in the city with the help of wealthy Lycians. During the Byzantine era, it was one of the leading cities in terms of religion and administration. Because of earthquakes and floods, Myra began losing its importance in the 7th century and became a village in the 12th century. The embossed and plain rock tombs are located on both sides of the Roman theater. Most of the tombs appear like large houses from a distance, while some are in the shape of a temple. The tombs show the Lycians’ use of wooden house architecture. Inside the tombs are human figures, depicting the deceased and their relatives. Pamukkale University Arts and History Department member Murat Dağdelen said the rock tombs are suitable for carving and processing and each clan had its own burying traditions. “We can see the examples of every kind of tradition of burying the dead in Anatolia,” he said, adding that rock tombs had become common in 1000 A.D. Dağdelen said the Urartians had become famous for processing tombs and made great contributions to give shape to rock tombs. http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/rock-tombs-focus-of-interest-in-antalya.aspx?pageID=238&nid=68570&NewsCatID=375

CHINE – Yecheng - A Jade casket containing relics of a prominent Buddhist has been found in north China's Hebei Province, local authorities said on Thursday. A farmer accidentally found a cushion-sized "stone" when he was ploughing fields in the historic site of Yecheng, a 2,500-year-old ancient city located in what is now Linzhang County of Handan City, according to the county's cultural relics protection department. The casket is 22 cm long, 19 cm wide and 9 cm high. It is believed to be an artifact of Hinayana, a branch of Buddhism that prevailed in Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Thailand, said He Liqun, an archaeologist with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. He said the finding proves that Hinayana was introduced to China's middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River. "Such a casket containing relics of a prominent Buddhist is often enshrined in an underground palace of a Buddhist temple," he added. Yecheng, an ancient capital of many dynasties, was once a political, economic and cultural center in middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River. Historical data showed that it has more than 80,000 monks and nuns in 900 temples in the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi dynasties (534-577).

ROYAUME UNI – Jersey - An iron age settlement has been unearthed in Jersey after a two month excavation. The work on the site in St Clement has discovered objects dating back over 2,000 years. Field Archaeologist, Robert Waterhouse, said the site had produced evidence of the first Iron Age house to be discovered on the island. He said the site dates from the 2nd Century BC to the early 1st Century AD and was likely a private home. Mr Waterhouse said: "It includes a probable rectangular house, built of timber with wattle and daub wall panels. "Three periods of activity have been identified, the first having a large ditch crossing the site, of 2nd to 1st century BC date - firmly in the Iron Age." The best evidence is from the second period, when a square wooden house and animal paddock were built inside a hedged and ditched enclosure.Finds from this period include much pottery of the mid to late 1st century BC, including high status imported wares from Brittany, bones of pig, sheep and cattle, and limpets, which were eaten in their thousands. The last period, from 10BC to 20AD includes evidence for iron smelting and much imported Roman pottery, made on the borders of France, Belgium and Germany, suggesting trade links with that area.